Monthly Report - August 2026
Last week the Howick Local Board accepted my members report for August. This is my sixth report for the term covering until 19 August.
While every local board member and our councillors have the opportunity to provide a written or verbal report, they don't have to. I think it's an important part of transparency, providing formal visibility of what we've been doing and the issues we are dealing with.
I've copied the text of the report here (for ease of reading), the images show the full report (3 pages, including pictures).
"This is my sixth Members report for the term, with my last update covering up until 15 July.
Key themes:
• Matariki Celebrated at O Wairoa Marae
• Celebrating 15 years of Youth Empowerment with Howick Youth Council
• Lack of funding continues to impact communities
In mid-July we celebrated Matariki at O Wairoa Marae in Howick, building on the success of the previous years. This started with a pre-dawn service around a firepit followed by kai. Later that morning, in partnership with Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, the Marae offered an opportunity for members of the community to paddle waka from Whitford across to Howick Beach - Chair Bruce Kendall and I joined other locals in taking up this special opportunity. It was an incredible experience arriving at Howick Beach, where we were met by the community including Members Adele White and John Spiller.
In August we celebrated 15 years of Howick Youth Council (HYC) with a special event at Bucklands Beach Yacht Club. One of the early initiatives of the Howick Local Board, HYC continues to provide local rangatahi (youth) an opportunity to represent and empower local youth. With a third of our local population (170k residents) under the age of 25, HYC is a vital part of ensuring that rangatahi have a voice, are valued, and can contribute. Made up of 32 volunteers from our 9 local colleges plus open seats (enabling tertiary students to be involved), HYC is empowered to develop their own programme of activities and events across the year, with funding from the Howick Local Board. Recent examples include events tackling mental health, financial literacy, and youth employment as well as environmental action, social activities, and fun. Year after year, I am inspired by the leadership qualities displayed by members of HYC and extremely proud to be able to play a small part in supporting their endeavours. The following week, HYC hosted their inaugural ‘East After Dark’ concert, featuring 17 performances from local bands and musicians. The talent on display was incredible and, together with exceptional organisation from HYC, made for an awesome evening of music.
We recently had a workshop on the draft strategy for playground provision, with staff proposing a sensible opportunity-first approach - as existing playgrounds need upgrading or replacing, we’ll consider if they should be relocated to address gaps with the focus of new provision for Flat Bush. But the pending closure of the Pakūranga Community Hall represents the harsh reality of our financial constraints – we do not have enough funding to maintain what we have. This must be our priority for the upcoming Long Term Plan. As previously expressed, I am very concerned that the upcoming transport reform will mean we are burdened with even more failing and missing assets without funding or a plan to address the issues. I've asked Auckland Transport to provide information on the length and state of our local roads and footpaths, including where there are gaps in the footpath network. I've also asked for clarification on their inspection, maintenance and repair policies to help understand what the current level of service should be. As these move across to council, I want to ensure we're tackling the right problems to address these issues."
The official version can be found here: https://aucklandcouncil.resolve.red/portal/meeting/12502/101137?type=2&docId=51595